Rose State College
Rose State College
Midwest City, OK (near Oklahoma City, OK)
Higher Education
Rose State College transforms aerospace and cybersecurity learning spaces with flexible AV-over-IP solution and VR design
About Rose State College
Rose State College is a two-year higher education institution located in Midwest City, just outside Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. The school is home to the Tanenbaum Aerospace and Cybersecurity Center (TACC). The center serves students, staff, and external organizations such as the local military base and non-profits. Glenna and Richard Tanenbaum recently donated to the aerospace and cybersecurity center to support the facility’s renovation.
Project Overview and Goals
Rose State College decided to upgrade TACC aesthetics and audio visual systems throughout the building. Six learning spaces, including a four-way dividable classroom, a lecture hall, and another classroom, were operating with AV systems original to building blueprints from 2007. It was time for an upgrade. Rather than replace each room piece by piece, Rose State College wanted a standardized, centrally controlled, and flexible solution with:
- Clear video projection
- Room touch panel activation
- Easy audio and video switching between spaces
- Zoom and Microsoft Teams compatibility
- Presenter lecterns for easy access to room AV equipment
- A simple, consistent end-user room technology experience
Jeff Kopp, former Hardware Coordinator at Rose State College and leader of the classroom transformation, said, “Anyone had to be able to come in and look at a touch panel, touch the buttons, and have the technology work.”
Solution – Custom AV-over-IP solution supported by AVI-SPL VR Design Services
“The new AV system had to be extremely flexible, especially with a four-way dividable space,” said Justin Vaughn, AVI-SPL Systems Integration Account Manager. “In addition to projection systems, Rose State College wanted presenter and audience cameras in every space. They also needed to send audio and video signals across multiple rooms simultaneously. AV over IP became an integral part of the project because it supports infinite input and output connection points.”
Vaughn created a standardized AV-over-IP solution, including a Q-SYS audio and control system and room start-up touch panels. Each space had an Epson PowerLite L770U projector, a Sharp WUXGA widescreen room presentation monitor, Shure ULXD wireless microphones, and MXA920 ceiling array microphones. In addition, each room featured PTZ cameras for presenter and audience capture, ceiling speakers, presenter lecterns, and wall plate encoders and decoders.
Rose State College’s tiered lecture hall would require two Epson PowerLite projectors and a Q-SYS PTZ camera. Pairing the camera with the in-room Q-SYS touch panel enables end users to split the 75-seat lecture hall into three segments for easier participant conversation tracking.
Virtual reality design: validating the vision and streamlining decision-making
Rose State College had specific room layouts, each with aging technology. Jeff Kopp and his team had to ensure the proposed AV solutions would fit each space. Knowing this, Justin Vaughn suggested AVI-SPL’s virtual reality design service.
The service enables stakeholders to test room designs, adjust devices and furniture in real time, and accelerate design decisions before investing in the technology.
Vaughn provided measurements so AVI-SPL’s VR design team could virtually construct each space.
“That was the first time I had ever seen that,” said Kopp. “We were able to see what the room would look like, the point of view of the cameras, and projector shooting angles. So, we could see what the room would look like without installing any equipment.”
Rose State College also appreciated being able to make real-time room design changes and decisions.
“We moved some things around, trying different camera angles,” said Kopp. “Instead of delivering equipment to a space and holding it up to a wall to understand whether the device fits in that area, we could look at it virtually to make a decision. And the technology worked exactly how the virtual representation showed.”
AVI-SPL goes above and beyond to ensure a quality integration experience
As soon as Rose State College schedules would allow, AVI-SPL AV experts, led by Ryan Walters, Systems Integration Project Manager, began the installation process.
“AVI-SPL gave us just above and beyond service,” said Kopp. “If we had some little issues with some parts, the installers came and swapped it out. In some cases, they had to get some completely different parts to get the job right. They went above and beyond to make sure the job was really what we were envisioning.”
Ryan’s team also accommodated on-the-spot configuration changes.
Kopp shared, “Many of the part change requests were for IP solutions and different configurations. We made some changes that were not in the original layout. And we made some changes once the rooms were live. AVI-SPL was able to make little adjustments that became big room features that we weren’t quite expecting.”
Justin Vaughn also appreciated AVI-SPL’s diligence in their approach to integrating the AV-over-IP solution.
“The install team was extremely communicative throughout the entire process,” said Vaughn. “Our project manager always sent a follow-up email highlighting what was achieved after every installation visit.”
Results
The multi-space AV-over-IP solution has already made an impact. According to John Shackelford, Rose State College Event Coordinator, groups that used the original technology in these spaces have noticed quite a difference in their AV experience.
“They love the new technology,” said Shackelford. “Our internal groups were here when we still had VGA connections. They remembered the troubles we had with it. But they always liked it because of the seminar room’s layout. This time, they were impressed with the room’s capabilities and the flexibility of hooking up a laptop or just using the computer. Being able to easily tap into those cameras was nice because they like to run hybrid events.”
Rose State College is organizing a grand opening at the Tanenbaum Aerospace and Cybersecurity Center, where they will put the new AV-over-IP solution to the test.
Shackelford shared, “We plan on having a hype video play through the entire first floor, including in the lobby. It’s going to run on the screens in our lecture hall. We’re going to utilize that space as overflow, so it’ll go to another classroom and the dividable space. We’ll push a button, and the hype video goes everywhere.”
If you think AV-over-IP would be ideal for your learning or collaboration spaces, AVI-SPL technology experts can help. Our AV and UC services experts can help you design, integrate, and manage your desired collaboration technology experience. We’ll also work with you to map your spaces with our virtual reality design services, ensuring each room meets your needs.
Don’t wait. Contact us today to get started on your next AV-over-IP project.